Financial Support

There are a variety of sources of financial assistance within the Department of Psychology. The most common forms of support are half-time teaching assistantships and research assistantships. While admission to the program does not guarantee financial support, admission into the graduate program is usually accompanied by a 4-year commitment of financial support. Students on an assistantship must become a state of Washington resident within the first semester of admittance to be eligible for in-state tuition waivers. Out-of-state tuition waivers are provided during the first year only.

Union affiliation/collective bargaining agreement:

Academic student employee (ASE) positions are union represented and governed by the collective bargaining agreement as written or amended between Washington State University and the United Automobile, Aerospace, and Agricultural implement Workers of America (UAW). Please reference this agreement for details on all ASE benefits, including, but not limited to, vacation (Article 28), holidays (Article 29), and sick leave (Article 30). Additional information regarding leave requests can be found at the College of Arts and Sciences leave information page.

Required trainings and attestations:

Graduate students on an assistantship are required to complete several online trainings and attestations, including:

• Responsible Conduct of Research Training: The graduate school requires all graduate students on an assistantship complete the web-based Responsible Conduct of Research Training. The current requirement is for the Collaborative Institutional Training Initiative (CITI) RCR.
• Training in Ethical Treatment of Research Subjects: All WSU employees, including graduate students, involved in research with human participants must complete training in the ethical and equitable treatment of participants in research. Those involved in research, teaching, training, and production using live vertebrate animals must complete Institutional Animal Care and Use Committee training. Contact your graduate advisor to determine which trainings and modules are appropriate.
• Discrimination, Sexual Harassment, and Sexual Misconduct Prevention (DSHP) training: This training is mandatory for all WSU employees, including graduate students on assistantship. The training is offered online through the WSU Human Resource Services. An online employee annual refresher is required each year for continuing students and employees.
• Family Educational Rights and Privacy Act (FERPA) training: Required for all students who will be teaching (including as a teaching assistant).
• Sexual Misconduct Statement (SMS): To comply with state of Washington law (RCW 28B.112), any student desiring to be considered for an assistantship must declare whether the student is the subject of any sustained findings of sexual misconduct in any current or former employment or is currently being investigated for, or have left a position during an investigation into, a violation of any sexual misconduct policy at the applicant’s current or past employers. The SMS form will be sent to graduate students after they have accepted an offer of admission.
• Additional University required trainings are outlined on the Human Resource Services New Employee Training website.